Crowd celebrates Allentown park’s renaming to honor mentor, local legend

ALLENTOWN, Pa. — The name of a Black barber hailed as a pillar of his community now graces the park where he made his legend.

Allentown City Council on Wednesday unanimously approved a measure to rename Valania Park after Clyde Bosket Sr., a master barber who died in October 2023 at the age of 94.

The city on Thursday held a ceremony at Clyde E. Bosket Sr. Park to hang the new signs and honor Bosket.

At least 50 people joined in the celebration.

Numerous speakers paid tribute to Bosket’s mentorship of generations of Lehigh Valley barbers and many others after he moved to Allentown in 1956.

Bosket “built a foundation for many” who lived in his neighborhood southeast of Center City and beyond, according to Andrew Jones, owner of G&A Barber Shop.

Jones, 52, said he first met Bosket when he was 14. He was flanked by other Bosket-trained barbers as he commemorated his mentor Thursday.

“He taught me how to represent as a man, as a business, and he taught me how to create my own foundation off of his,” Jones said.

Jones said he's “truly grateful” for Bosket’s influence on his life.

'An icon in my life'

Dwayne Jones, chief executive officer of Preventive Measures, said he changed his plans to ensure he could speak at Thursday’s event. Jones, an Allentown native, now lives in Atlanta.

Bosket “was an icon in my life,” Jones said. He said he believes Bosket was divinely “appointed” to lead his neighborhood.

“Community is one of the most important aspects of the kingdom of God,” Jones said. “Clyde Bosket was community.”

Bosket — known to many as Mr. Clyde — moved to Allentown in the 1950s after serving two years in the U.S. Army during the Korean War and getting his certifications to be a barber, according to his obituary.

He opened his first barber shop at 215 S. 5th St., about a block from Bosket Park, and also served migrant workers and those in the correctional system, according to his supporters.